ATLANTA – Dwon Odom scored 20 points and Jamaine Mann scored 12 as Georgia State scored eight of the last 10 points to gut out a 57-53 win over Texas A&M Commerce in their second game of the Capitol Classic presented by Legacy at the GSU Convocation Center.

Odom, who shot 6-of-12 from the field, fell one point shy of his career-high of 21 set against Mercer on November 15 while also grabbing a team-high six rebounds with four assists. Mann played 27 minutes off the bench and scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half, including eight of the Panther's final 16 in a strong effort playing through an injury sustained against Eastern Kentucky.

Kalik Brooks added eight points, matching his career-high set yesterday against Eastern Kentucky.  Edward Nnamoko grabbed six rebounds, equaling Odom's total, and Jalen Bouknight played six minutes in his Panther debut.

Georgia State (3-2) shot 20-of-48 from the field and made 13-of-14 free throws while outrebounding Texas A&M Commerce 30-28 despite playing without two starters due to injury.

"First, I would like to give a lot of credit to Texas A&M Commerce.  I think that is a well-coached team, and they provided a lot of challenges for us.  But I cannot say enough about the group that I have in our locker room," said GSU head coach Jonas Hayes.  "The amount of fight, the amount of grit that we're showing is what I think is the foundation of championship basketball.  It may not always look pretty, but I think the mentality that we have through all the immense adversities that we've had, for us to find enough within ourselves to continue to fight forward, that's huge for this group going forward."

GSU trailed 51-48 with 2:40 remaining when Odom sparked the Panthers rally with a turnaround jumper to pull the Panthers within one.  He then got the ball back after a stop on defense, but missed the go-ahead jumper, leading to a mad scramble by both teams for the loose ball.  Ja'Heim Hudson came out of the pile with the ball and dished it to Mann, who laid it in to put the Panthers up for good.  The Panthers then made five of their last six free throws to close out the game and secure the victory.

The Panthers led 38-27 with 14:03 left when both teams exchanged scoring runs, setting the stage for the thrilling finish.  Texas A&M-Commerce went on a 15-3 run to take a one point lead with 8:50 remaining.  GSU then retook the lead with a 7-0 run before the Lions went on a 9-0 run to lead 51-48 heading into the final minutes.

Georgia State shot 47.8 percent in the first half and used an 11-0 run to pull out front 22-11 with 7:54 remaining.  They led 30-19 lead with 2:45 left before the Lions managed the last four points to make it 30-23 at halftime.

The Panthers will be in action again tomorrow for the conclusion of the Capitol Classic, facing UNC Asheville at 3:30 p.m.